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Dear friends and neighbors,
The 2026 legislative session is underway in Olympia, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to represent our community and keep you updated as the work moves quickly over the next two months.
As we are starting the second week of this 60-day session, I think Speaker Jinkins’ opening ceremony remarks do a good job laying out the challenges we are facing and highlighting our commitment to Washingtonians by putting people first.
Washington State Representatives recite the Pledge of Allegiance on the first day of the 2026 Legislative Session. Click here or on the photo to watch the opening ceremony.
Honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
Today we celebrate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I shot a brief video with my thoughts, click here to watch it.
2026 Challenges & HR1 Impacts
This session begins under difficult fiscal conditions with a $3.2 billion maintenance level expenditure over the four-year outlook period. Primarily, detrimental impacts from cuts in HR 1 are resulting in increased funding requirements including an additional $900 million investment for DSHS and SNAP policy changes, $800 million for the Health Care Authority, $600 million for childcare funding, and $500 million for special-ed funding.
Please visit this Office of Financial Management website, updated on a monthly basis, that provides specific information on the federal changes in HR1 and when they take effect.
The governor’s proposed budget reflects how challenging this moment is for our state—but it also raises serious concerns. It includes cuts to essential services that families, students, seniors, and vulnerable communities count on every day. These aren’t just line items in a budget; they affect real people and real lives in communities across Washington.
I’m approaching this year’s supplemental budget with a clear set of values: protect food, shelter, and health care – especially for the most vulnerable among us. This 60-day session will be another exercise in how our state can come together in defending fundamental freedoms and economic security for our neighbors.
We also have to face the fact that our state’s revenue system is outdated and doesn’t meet today’s needs. It’s the second most regressive tax system in the country, putting the greatest burden on the people who can least afford it. It’s time to take an honest and serious look at our options and take action—because Washingtonians deserve a budget and a tax system that truly work for all of us.
Video Update
I recorded my first video update of the session last week. Click here or on the image below to watch it:
Your Voice Matters!
Effective representation starts with listening. In my previous newsletter, done jointly with my seatmate, Rep. Strom Peterson, we sent you a survey to learn about your priorities. If you were able to take it, thank you so much! If not, here’s another opportunity! Hearing directly from you helps inform my legislative work to ensure your voice is reflected in the decisions I make in Olympia.
A Quick Look at my Bills
These are the measures I am sponsoring this year with brief descriptions. Click on the bill numbers below to learn more about them and check out my bill sponsorship page to see where these bills are at any given moment throughout the session.
HB 1683 – Adjusting school director districts: Requires larger school districts (over 3,000 students) to elect a minimum number of board directors from designated member districts rather than all at large, with thresholds for how many directors are district-elected based on enrollment size. The Education Committee heard my bill last week, watch my testimony here.
HB 2105 – Immigrant Worker Protection Act: Creates new state protections for immigrant workers by requiring employers to provide timely notice and information when federal audits of employment eligibility (I-9 inspections) occur. It prohibits employers from voluntarily consenting to federal access to worker records without legal process; and prohibits retaliation against workers exercising their rights.This measure had a hearing last week, here’s my testimony.
HB 2218 – Access to medical care in workers’ compensation: Updates Washington’s workers’ compensation law to require that injured workers have access to high-quality medical care consistent with current health-care best practices, a coordinated provider network under the Department of Labor & Industries, and guidelines for provider credentialing and quality standards. The bill was heard in committee last week; watch my testimony here.
HB 2219 – Enhancing operational efficiency of childcare providers: Updates early learning and childcare licensing standards; creates a unified licensing framework that accounts for family care, nature-based, and center settings; allows mixed-age group ratios within limits; and waives certain orientation requirements for staff who’ve already completed them. This bill was heard last week and here’s my testimony.
HB 2464 – Reporting & law enforcement responses at private detention facilities: Updates state law governing private detention facilities by requiring compliance with food standards, communication access, reporting of serious incidents (abuse, neglect, injury, death), written rights-and-safety policies posted for detained persons, staffing and infection control protocols, and annual reporting from law enforcement to the Department of Health. My bill was heard this afternoon and here’s my testimony.
HB 2475 – Language accessible public programs and services: Establishes a new chapter in state law requiring state agencies to provide language-accessible public programs, activities, and services, including oral, audio, written, tactile, or visual communication in an individual’s primary language (including signed languages). It also directs development of uniform guidelines and a statewide plan to address interpreter/translator shortages.
HB 2497 – Supporting families & improving child welfare oversight: Strengthens responses to critical maltreatment-related child fatalities or near fatalities by increasing court oversight during shelter care, expanding access to legal counsel and parent allies for at-risk parents (including pregnant people and those with newborns), improving coordination with community-based services, and aligning related behavioral health and family support services across agencies.
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Keep in Touch
Thank you for taking the time to read my newsletter and filling out the 21st District Priorities Survey.
I’ll keep sharing updates throughout session but, if at any time you need more information on any legislative issue, please don’t hesitate to contact my office.
Sincerely,
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